Archive for the ‘Iron Butt’ tag

Brian arrived in Billings, Montana, with 2350 miles accumulated in 48 hours, certified by several witnesses. He successfully completed his double Iron Butt even with delays upon departure. His mileage was more than he had anticipated, due to detours in Central New York. He was able to get about 3-1/2 hours of sleep along the way in Rochester, Minnesota, and still arrive at his destination on time. He left to return on Saturday from Billings and shredded a rear tire on interstate 90, halfway between Gillette, Wyoming, and Rapid City, South Dakota. He was able to locate a tow truck to pick him up and get the bike to the dealer in Rapid City just in time. The dealership had kept a man on an extra hour to change his tire and get him back on the road. Brian spent Sunday night in Elkhart, Indiana and arrived home in Schenectady, New York, around 6 Monday night. All in all, 4,496 miles in 5 days, including the bad tire.

Brian checked in at 8:30 last night from Rochester, MN. He said the road conditions are good and he was able to stay dry most of the day. His odometer had him at 1300 miles although he has on been officially credited with 1150. That shows you how much time and real estate he lost with the detours in Central NY shortly after he began. The weather forecast is not looking very good for the rest of Day 2. Rain is heading towards him through Montana and South Dakota. He still has 947 miles to go in 20-1/2 hours, which means he still has to average a little over 45 miles an hour including stops to get to Billings by 5 PM Friday night. Already at 27-1/2 hours on the road, Brian said he is still enjoying the ride and has stayed alert (deer on an interstate after dark tend to do that). Says he has not yet “hit the wall”, but is planning a cat nap once he gets a little closer to Rapid City, SD. For those of you who haven’t been on I-90 in Midwest, once you cross the Mississippi in LaCrosse, WI, it gets flat, it gets hot and it’s a very long ride so it’s hard to keep focused, especially after all the time Brian has already spent on the road. I will post more information as it becomes available.

My friend Brian MacIntosh, who I have ridden with on 2 New England 1000 endurance races, set out yesterday on his own insanity double-iron-butt. He is attending the Harley Owners Group National Rally in Billings, MT this weekend. He calculated the mileage at 2014 miles from his home in Schenectady, NY. He is attempting to get to Billings in 48 hours. Now a “normal” Iron Butt ride is sanctioned as 1,000 miles in 24 hours. We have both completed two in around 21 or 22 hours and it is a difficult matter just to complete that one and not something we recommend for most riders. Granted he will be on interstate most of the way but when he left on Wednesday at 5 PM, most of central New York was shut down due to flooding, including the NYS Thruway and Interstate 88 to Binghampton. But all is well so far. Heard from him at 7:30 this morning and even with all the re-routing and delays he made it to Toledo in 13-1/2 hours. Map Quest says he has 1528 miles to go. That means he has to average 45 miles an hour for the next 34-1/2 hours, including gas stops, food and rest. He says he’s right back on his target (45 miles per hour including breaks) after the early delays. I’ll post more info as it comes in, but in the meantime, you can check out the official Iron Butt sanctioning body at this link: http://www.ironbutt.com/about/default.cfm and information about the New England Saddlesore 1000 we have completed at this link: http://members.aol.com/NE1000Run/

Here is a picture of Brian with one of his other bikes, a ’59 Panhead dresser that he restored (future article pending). Brian actually did the double Iron Butt on his 100th anniversary Screamin’ Eagle Road King. Press photo from Harley below:

Up for a little ride? How does better than 11,000 miles in 11 days sound? That’s exactly what the riders in the 2005 Iron Butt Rally, dubbed the World’s Toughest Motorcycle Competition, are setting out to do.
The event, which takes place every two years, consists of five checkpoints stationed around the perimeter of the United States. Riders must hit each of these checkpoints — which are not given out until the morning the event starts –within a two-hour time window in order to finish.
The rally began on Monday, August 22, at 10:00 a.m. in Denver, Colorado, and finishes on Friday, September 2nd. The first checkpoint is at Reynolds Motorsports, 702 Naragansett Trail, Buxton, Maine, on Monday, August 29.

Rally officials point out that this is not a race. Competitors are encouraged to ride safely and within the speed limits. Demerits are assessed for speeding fines collected along the way.
To keep up with the events, read Bob Higdon’s daily reports at: www.ironbuttrally.com .
If you’re interested in learning a lot more about how competitors manage to stay on the bike for so long, read Ron Ayres’ great book, Against the Wind.

(This post originally appeared in the August 25, 2005, issue of the Hemmings eWeekly Newsletter.)